Dustless grinder and mixer for feed materials and the like



J. J. BYBERG July 2, 1957 DUSTLESS GRINDER AND MIXER FOR FEED MATERIALS AND THE LIKE Filed Aug. 11, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet l I55:7154:11:40,570;II!!!ll4A2711!!!ralllllllvfllllfilvlrllI!!!llvilldlllilllllllldll INVENTOR.

' JONAS d. BYBERG B ATTORNEY J. J. BYBERG July 2, 1957 DUSTLESS GRINDER AND MIXER FOR FEED MATERIALS AND TI- IE LIKE Filed Aug. 11, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

JONAS J BYBERG BY ATTORNEY y 1957 J. J. BYBERG 2,797,877

DUSTLESS GRINDER AND MIXER FOR FEED MATERIALS AND THE LIKE Filed Aug. 11, 1955 5 SheetsSheet 3 INVENTOR.

T25 I JONAS J BYBERG ATTORNEY atent 2,797,877 Patented July 2, 1957 DUSTLESE; GRTRTDER AND MDQER FGR FEED MATERTALS AND THE LEKE Jonas .l. Byberg, Silver-ton, Greg.

Application August 11, 1955, Serial No. 527,701

9 Qiairns. (Cl. 241--%) This invention relates to the grinding and mixing of such materials as feed for animals, and relates particularly to the grinding and mixing of feed grains and special feed ingredients customarily mixed on farms; and this application is a continuation-in-part of my pending application Ser. No. 357,540, filed under date of May 26, 1953, and entitled Feed Mixer and Grinder.

In the preparation of modern feed mixes for animals on the farm, which preparation includes grinding and mixing of different grains, and generally the addition of some special supplement, such as antibiotics and concentrates, currently available on the market, there are two problems generally encountered. One of these is the prevention of part of the finely ground feed from being scattered from the grinding machine as dust during the grinding and mixing operation. The other problem is to prevent uneven distribution of the special added ingredients, such as antibiotics, etc., in the final grain mixture, since an excessive amount of these ingredients in any portion of the feed mixture might be injurious, in addition to preventing the desired adequate amount being distributed in the remaining portion of the feed.

In order to control the dust resulting from the grinding it has been customary, when possible, to use completely covered grinding and mixing machines. However, this is an inconvenience, and also prevents the farmer or operator of the machine from carefuly watching the grinding and mixing process.

An important object of the present invention is to provide an improved open grinder and mixer from which very little, if any, dust will be thrown off regardless of the speed at which the machine operates and regardless of the fact that the machine remains uncovered during its entire operation.

Another object of the present invention is to provide such a feed grinder and mixer with improved mixing means which will insure more thorough and more reliable mixing and distribution of any special ingredients which are added to the main feed materials during the operation of the machine.

These special objects as well as incidental advantages are attained by certain novel improvements in construction and arrangement of parts and with certain additions to the grinder and mixer of the previously mentioned pending application, and which improvements are herein briefly described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of the improved dustless grinder and mixer;

Figure 2 is a plan section taken on lines 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary enlarged elevation of the upper portion of the machine including the grinding means and mixing bowl, a portion of the latter being broken away for clarity;

Figure 4 is a sectional elevation similar in part to Figure 1 showing a slightly modified form in which the invention may be carried out; and

Figure 5 is a plan section on line 5-5 of Figure 4.

In Figure 1 the tank within which the grinding and mixing takes place is indicated by the reference character It The tank may be of any desired size and shape, but it is shown in the figure as having a cylindrical main upper portion and a conically shaped bottom portion, tanks more or less of this general shape being customarily used for the mixing of feed materials on farms. A mixing auger 11 is mounted in the tank, being centrally posi tioned, as is usual in a mixing tank of the shape illustrated. The auger has a shaft 12 which has a bearing 17 in the bottom of the tank and an upper supporting bearing which is mounted in an adjustable bearing housing 15.

The tank is open at the top but a cross bar supporting frame structure 13 is secured to the top of the tank for supporting the auger and associated members. This frame structure 13 has a central boss 14 which is threaded on the inside to correspond to the threads on the outside of the bearing housing 15 for the auger shaft. Thus the bearing housing 15, and with it the auger shaft, can be adjusted to a limited extent vertically. Preferably a lock nut 16 is also provided to secure the bearing housing, and therewith the auger shaft, in the desired adjusted position. The auger is driven by suitable outside means (not shown).

The auger is surrounded throughout most its extent as usual by an auger tube or conveyor tube 21 which extends up to approximately the same height as the top end of the auger blade. The top of the tube 21 is integral with, or rigidly secured to, a bowl 22. Hangers 24, attached to the rim of the bowl 22 and to the mounting support frame 13, support the bowl 22 and therewith tube 21. The rim wall of the bowl extends upwardly and the top of the rim of the bowl thus lies in a hori zontal plane spaced above the plane of the top end of the auger tube 21.

A lower grinding burr member or grinding ring 23 (see also Figure 3) is secured to the bottom of the bowl 22 concentric with the axis of the auger and auger tube. A disk or plate 18 is secured to the auger shaft 12 above the bottom of the bowl and spaced above lower grinding member 23, and a companion upper grinding member or ring 19 is secured to the under side of this disk 18. Thus, with proper vertical adjustment of the auger shaft, the rotation of the auger will result in a grinding action being performed by the companion grinding members 19 and 23 on the material as delivered by the auger to the top of the tube 21. Y

Ordinarily the fine grinding of dry feed materials in an uncovered tank or other receptacle would result in a. considerable amount of dust being given off into thesurrounding air. Consequently such grinding and mixing of feed grain heretofore preferably has been done in a covered tank or receptacle. However, this is an inconvenience since it necessitates removal of the cover whenever additional material is to be poured into the receptacle or tank and prevents the operator from observing the grinding and mixing process except from time to time as the cover is removed.

This difiiculty is eliminated with the present invention inasmuch as the material which is delivered through the burrs or grinding rings passes from them first into the surrounding bowl 22 and then later spills over the top rim of the bowl into the tank. Since the rim of the bowl is located at a higher level than the working faces of the grinders, the dust which would ordinarily be given off in the course of the grinding, isrestrained and prevented from passing off into the air by the surrounding slowly moving mass of material with which the bowl is always filled.

In order to facilitate the movement of the material through and away from the burrs or grinding rings, and to prevent loss of horsepower which might result from impeding the movement of material through the grinders, vanes or slingers 25 are secured to the under side of the disk 18 at the periphery of the grinding elements and these slingers act as centrifugal pushers in keeping the contacted material moving radially outwardly.

A hood 20 (Figures 1 and 3), preferably although not necessarily conical in shape, is secured to the boss 14 or otherwise supported from the frame structure 13. This hood extends entirely over the disk 18 and its bottom rim is positioned slightly above the plane of the top face of the disk 18, and also below the plane of the top rim of the bowl 22. The diameter of the bottom rim of the hood 20 is greater than the diameter of the disk 18 but less than that of the top rim of the bowl 22.

Very generally, in modern feed mixtures, small proportions of specially prepared supplements, such as antibiotics, concentrates etc., are added to the regular feed mixture. The problem heretofore has been to have such supplemental ingredients thoroughly and evenly distributed throughout the entire mass of the mixed feed. As previously mentioned, improper distribution and a concentration of an excessive amount of antibiotics, for example, in any part of the feed mass, could be very detrimental.

The device of this invention enables such additional ingredients to be perfectly mixed with the feed in controlled proportions. For this purpose a tube 27 (Figure 1), supported in any suitable manner (not shown) and fitted with an enlarged intake at the upper end, extends down through the hood 20 and terminates a short distance above the disk 18 near the center of the disk. As the disk 18 is rotated rapidly, with the operation of the grinding and mixing machine, any additional material delivered through the tube 27 onto the disk 18, will be sprayed outwardly from the disk by centrifugal force into the material moving out toward the rim of the bowl 22. Since the outward movement of the material in the bowl will be constant, as long as predetermined conditions are maintained during the grinding and mixing operation, the proper control of the delivery of the additional or supplemental material onto the disk 18 will result in a desired and accurate mixing of such additional material with the feed mass. Any suitable dispenser for such additional'material, such as a hopper 26 shown in Figure 1, with a controllable outlet discharging into the intake for the tube 27, may be employed; or, in case such additional material is in liquid form, a suitably controlled pump (not shown) could be employed.

The device may be employed merely for mixing without grinding by adjusting the position of the auger shaft and the resulting spacing between the burrs or grinding rings so that no grinding will take place. In this way the device can also be used for mixing sticky liquids with the ground grain or other feed material while'the presence of sticky liquid in the mass would render grinding of the same impractical.

In some cases it may be desired to draw oif some of the ground and mixed material as it is received into the bowl 22, or to empty the tank entirely in this manner, instead of drawing off the mixed material from the bottom of the tank through the customary clean out indicated at 30 in Figure 1. For this purpose a discharge chute 28 is connected with the bowl 22 and terminates in a discharging spout located on the outside of the tank. Passage of material out through such discharge chute from the tank is controlled by a suitable gate 29.

In the device shown in Figures 4 and S the tank 31, which corresponds to the tank of Figure 1, is similarly provided with an auger having a shaft 33 and an anger tube or conveyor tube 34. In place of the bowl 22 of Figures 1 and 2, a flat circular plate 35 is secured to the top of the conveyor tube 34. A cross frame 32 is mounted at the top of the tank, similar to frame 13 i of Figure l. The plate 35, and therewith the tube 34, are supported from the frame 32 by hanger supports 36. A boss 43 on the frame 32 adjustably supports the hearing housing 44 carrying the supporting bearing for the auger shaft 33. A lower grinding ring 37 is secured to the plate 35 concentric with the plate and tube 34. A disk 39 is secured to the auger shaft 33, and an upper grinding ring 38, corresponding to and cooperating with the lower grinding ring 37, is secured to the underside of the disk 39. Preferably vanes or slingers 45 are secured to the underside of the disk 39 at the periphery of the grinding rings to facilitate the movement of material through and outwardly and away from the grinding rings.

A hood 40, the major and outer portion of which is conical and which slopes outwardly and downwardly, and which has an inner, smaller, inwardly and downwardly sloping portion 41, is positioned around the auger shaft 33, bearing housing 44, and boss 43. The inner periphery of the portion 41 of the hood is of larger diameter than the outside wall of the boss 43, and lugs or extending fingers 42 on this inner periphery keep the hood substantially co-axial with the auger shaft and thus maintain an annular space between the inner periphery of the hood and the boss 43. The hood 40 is thus free to move up and down to a limited extent with respect to the boss 43 and could even, under some conditions, rotate about the boss.

The outer periphery of the hood 40 is greater than the periphery of the disk 39 but less than the outer periphery of the plate 35. Thus the hood normally will rest on the plate 35 and at the same time the hood is of such shape and size that it avoids contact with the disk 39 although being spaced a short distance from the disk periphery.

With the hood 40 resting on the plate 35, the material discharged from the grinding rings 37 and 38 will momentarily be restrained by the hood and consequently the travel of such material to the edge of the plate is temporarily impeded. However, as this material from the grinding rings builds up, its pressure against the underside of the hood around the rim will cause the hood to be lifted sufiiciently to enable some material to pass out beneath the rim of the hood and thus to move on to the periphery of the plate 35 and then drop down into the tank. At the same time, since the bottom rim of the hood will be constantly in contact with the moving mass of material, the dust given off by the grinders will be restrained and returned to the material as it passes from under the hood. In this way the fiat plate 35 and the movable hood 40 act in a manner similar to the bowl 22 of Figure l preventing any dust from the grinders from being discharged into the air.

This modified form of the device also enables additional supplemental ingredients, such as antibiotics, concentrates, etc., to be added to the regular feed mixture in an efiicient manner. A tube 46, supported in any suitable manner (not shown), has its discharging end positioned above the annular space between the inner rim of the hood and the boss 43, as shown in Figure 4. The additional material from thetube 46 drops down onto the rotating disk 39, from which it is sprayed outwardly by the rotation of the disk, striking the ground material as the latter moves outwardly under the rim of the hood. Thus this modified form of the device is also capable of carrying out the objects of the invention in a satisfactory and eflicient manner.

I claim:

1. In a grinder and mixer of the character described including a mixing tank, a driven auger vertically positioned in said tank, and a stationary conveyor tube surrounding the upper portion of said auger with the shaft for said auger extending up beyond said conveyor tube, a material-receiving member mounted at the top of said conveyor tube, a lower grinding element mounted on said member adjacent to the top end of said tube, an upper grinding element positioned above said lower grinding element, means for securing said upper grinding element to said auger shaft, means for adjusting the spacing between said grinding elements, means for supporting said member and said tube in said tank, said member having a periphery of greater diameter than the peripheries of said grinding elements but of less diameter than the top portion of said tank, and means on said member for temporarily retaining a limited amount of the material discharged from said grinding elements in the area surrounding said elements on said member and thereby blocking the escape of dust from said grinding elements.

2. In a grinder and mixer including a mixing tank, a driven auger vertically positioned in said tank, and a stationary conveyor tube surrounding the upper portion of said auger with the shaft for said auger extending up beyond said conveyor tube, a bowl at the top of said conveyor tube, a lower grinding element mounted in said bowl adjacent the top end of said tube, an upper grinding element in said bowl positioned above said lower grinding element, means for securing said upper grinding element to said auger shaft, said bowl having an upwardly extending wall with a rim positioned in a horizontal plane located above said grinding elements and spaced outwardly from said grinding elements but having a diameter considerably less than the top portion of said tank, means for supporting said bowl and said conveyor tube in said tank and means for adjusting the spacing between said grinding elements, whereby material passing from said grinding elements will pass first into said bowl and be temporarily retained there before being discharged from said bowl, while the material in said bowl will block the escape of dust from said grinding elements.

3. In a grinder and mixer, a tank, a driven auger vertically positioned in said tank, a stationary conveyor tube surrounding the upper portion of said auger, a stationary bowl attached to said conveyor tube, a lower stationary grinding ring mounted in said bowl co-axial with said tube, an upper circular grinding element in said bowl positioned above and co-axial with said ring, a disk secured to the auger shaft, said upper grinding element secured to the underside of said disk, said bowl having an up Wardly extending wall with a rim positioned in a horizon tal plane located above said disk, and spaced outwardly from said disk and having a diameter considerably less than the top portion of said tank, means for supporting said bowl and said conveyor tube in said tank, and means for adjusting said auger shaft vertically and thereby adjusting the position of said upper grinding element with respect to the lower grinding ring, whereby material passing from said grinding ring and grinding element will pass first into said bowl and be temporarily retained there before being discharged from said bowl, while the material in said bowl will block the escape of dust from said grinding ring and grinding element.

4. In a grinder and mixer, a mixing tank, a driven auger vertically positioned in said tank, a stationary conveyor tube surrounding the upper portion of said auger, the shaft for said auger extending up beyond said conveyor tube, a bowl at the top of said conveyor tube, a lower stationary grinding ring mounted in said bowl at the top end of said tube, an upper grinding ring in said bowl positioned above and co-axial with and substantially the same size as said lower ring, a disk secured to said auger shaft, said upper grinding ring secured to the underside of said disk, said bowl having an upwardly extending wall with a rim positioned in a horizontal plane located above said disk, and having a greater diameter than the outer diameter of said grinding rings but having a diameter considerably less than the top portion of said tank, means for supporting said bowl and said conveyor tube in said tank, means for adjusting said auger shaft vertically and thereby adjusting the position of said upper grinding ring with respect to the lower grinding ring, a hood located Cir above said disk, and means for depositing special ingre clients on said disk for mixing with the material'discharged from said grinding rings, whereby material passing from said grinding rings will pass first into said bowl and be temporarily retained there before being discharged from said bowl, while the material in said bowl will block the escape of dust from said grinding rings, and whereby the ingredients deposited on said rotating disk will be intermixed with the material in said bowl.

5. In a grinder and mixer of the character described for feed materials, a tank, a driven auger vertically and centrally positioned in said tank, a stationary conveyor tube surrounding said auger, a stationary bowl attached to the top of said conveyor tube, said bowl located at the upper portion of said tank, a lower stationary circular grinding element motmted in said bowl at the top end of said tube, an upper circular grinding element in said bowl co-axial with and substantially the same size as said lower element, means for securing said upper grinding element to said auger shaft, said bowl having an upwardlyextending wall with a rim positioned in a horizontal plane located above the plane of said upper grinding element and co-axial with said elements, said rim having a greater diameter than the outer diameter of said grinding elements, but having a diameter considerably less than the top portion of said tank, means for supporting said bowl and said conveyor tube in said tank, means for adjusting the spacing between said grinding elements, a discharge chute leading from one side of said bowl, whereby material passing from said grinding elements will pass first into said bowl and be temporarily retained there before being discharged from said bowl, while the material in said bowl will block the escape of dust from said grinding elements.

6. In a grinder and mixer including a mixing tank, a driven auger vertically positioned in said tank, a stationary conveyor tube surrounding the upper portion of said auger, a stationary bowl attached to the top of said conveyor tube, a lower stationary grinding ring mounted in said bowl at the top end of said tube, an upper circular grinding element in said bowl positioned above, co-axial with and substantially the same size as said lower ring, a disk secured to said auger shaft, said upper grinding element secured to the underside of said disk, members located at the periphery of said upper grinding element for moving material radially outward from said ring and said element as said element is rotated, said bowl having an upwardly-extending wall with a rim positioned in a horizontal plane located above said disk and co-axial with said disk, said rim spaced outwardly from said grinding element and grinding ring, but having a diameter considerably less than the top portion of said tank, means for supporting said bowl and said conveyor tube in said tank, means for adjusting said auger shaft vertically and thereby adjusting the position of said upper element with respect to said lower grinding ring, a hood located above said disk, and means for depositing special ingredients on said disk for mixing with the material discharged from said grinding element and grinding ring, whereby material passing from said grinding element and grinding ring will pass first into said bowl and be temporarily retained there before being discharged from said bowl, while the material in said bowl will block the escape of dust from said grinding element and grinding ring, and whereby the ingredients deposited on said rotating disk will be intermixed with the material in said bowl.

7. In a grinder and mixer including a mixing tank, a driven auger, a stationary conveyor tube surrounding said auger, a circular plate at the top of said tube, a pair of grinding elements above said plate co-axial with said tube, means connecting one of said grinding elements with the shaft of said auger, a hood normally resting on said plate, said hood having a downwardly-outwardly sloping wall terminating in a bottom rim having a diameter less than the outer periphery of said plate and greater than the outer peripheries of said grinding elemeats, means for maintaining said hood substantially in axial alinement with said plate and said tube while permitting limited up and down movement of said hood with respect to said plate, whereby material passing from said grinding elements onto said plate will encounter said wall of said hood and the pressure of such material against said wall will lift said hood sufficiently to enable some of the material to be pushed beneath the rim of said hood and discharged from said plate.

8. In a grinder and mixer including a mixing tank, a driven auger, a stationary conveyor tube surrounding said auger, a circular plate at the top of said tube, a pair of circular grinding elements above said plate co-axial with said tube, means connecting one of said grinding elements with the shaft of said auger, a hood located above said plate and cooperating with said plate to retain a portion of the material discharged from said grinding elements on said plate beyond the peripheries of said elements, whereby to block the dissemination of dust from said grinding elements.

9. The combination set forth in claim 8 with the addition of means for delivering special ingredients onto said upper grinding element beneath said hood for mixing with the material discharged from said grinding elements References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,465,713 Hartshorn Aug. 21, 1923 2,704,189 Macek Mar. 15, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 82,104 Sweden Sept. 17, 1934 

